On crime fiction beat with Sarah

London copper turns crime writer

A BURGHFIELD Common author has used her past experience as a police constable as the inspiration for her second novel.

Sarah Flint recently retired after 35 years fighting crime for the Metropolitan Police, before moving to West Berkshire to pursue a full-time career as a crime fiction writer.

Last month, she visited Mortimer Library to speak about her new book Trophy Taker.

Both her novels (Mummy’s Favourite and Trophy Taker) feature DC Charlotte Stafford and Hunter – who are based on police officers she used to work with on a daily basis.

She said: “There is a little bit of me and little bit of others that I worked with in Charlotte Stafford.

“They know they have been the inspiration and might recognise themselves in her.”

She added: “I use a lot of my knowledge of police procedures in my writing. I’ve never worked on a serial killer case as they are few and far between, but in the second book there is a dual story line which is based on something I’d dealt with.”

She has just finished writing the third book in the series, which will be ready for publication in January 2018.